I love how good this series is at "show, don't tell." Generally a skill that doesn't show up much in manga/anime, so when a series that does it right shows up, it really stands out.
Upon revisiting the Ataru saga, I've made a long overdue fix to ch10's translation that should clear a lot of confusion. Namely that
Ataru wasn't implying she was supposedly straight, but rather that she regretted how she never knew Sakuma could bat for HER side until after she had ended up with Wanko.